Insurance Plan For A Lifetime

Every decade of our lives including those critical months before our birth is characterized by physical growth, development or deterioration, escalating or diminishing hormone levels, lifestyle stages and certain common health concerns.

The following are some recommendations for optimizing your health and overcoming the hurdles typical of these different life stages.

Each of the following age brackets has new recommendations but also include those of the previous age.

Prenatal to 15

The role of nutrition in a child's health can't be underestimated even before life outside the womb begins. Good maternal dietary strategies and optimal nutrition affects the health of infants and can impact their well-being even in adulthood. Besides disease prevention, an adequate intake
of proper nutrients can have positive effects on mental health, behaviour and cognitive function.

• Moms, moms-to-be and children can take a daily protein shake with a scoop of whey protein isolate powder, one cup (250 ml) of rice or almond milk, two tablespoons of soy lecithin granules, a half-cup of blueberries (fresh or frozen) and two heaping tablespoons of natural yogurt. To supercharge this tasty shake, empty a children's multivitamin/multimineral capsule into the shake before mixing.
• Daily, give children a "green drink" powder in one cup (250 ml) of water or a half-cup (125 ml) of unsweetened juice mixed with a half-cup (125 ml) of water.
• Make certain your salads and vegetables look and smell appealing.
• Supplement with fish oils, cod liver oil or algae extract daily.

15 to 25

During this time, our metabolism is at its peak. Hormone levels are optimum and lean muscle mass is easily formed. Cognitive levels, our immune responses, cardiovascular health, hair quality and skin texture are also at their best.

• Avoid fried foods full of biologically destructive trans fatty acids found in hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oils. Be cool eat naturally.
• Try to eat a salad every day.
• Experiment with and find vegetables you really like and try them raw, steamed, grated or roasted.
• Instead of eating red meat, try chicken cooked with the skin off and the fat removed. And have fresh, broiled fish, such as salmon, three times a week to keep your brain and nervous system full of DHA and EPA.
• Make an energizing "green drink" each morning.
• Take a multivitamin capsule with breakfast and a multimineral with dinner.
• Juice yourself a glass of fresh vegetable juice each day for radiant skin and glowing hair.
• Get buffed by working out at the gym five days a week.
• Drink lots of water to keep your skin clear; use a sports container with a plastic straw to minimize the amount of air you take in.

25 to 35

In this decade, our bone mass is at its peak. If you haven't already started, this is the time to do weight-bearing exercises three to four times a week, to maximize bone density. Stretch daily to loosen and lengthen your body. Take some time for your own renewal, especially to meditate, pray, exercise, go for hikes, write poetry, read inspiring books and gaze at stars.

• Before sleep, take one teaspoon of flax or hemp seed oil, a quarter-cup of organic yogurt and three garlic capsules or two cloves of chopped garlic. Also take minerals to include 200 mg of elemental calcium, 150 mg of elemental magnesium, 30 mg of zinc, 25 mg of manganese, 200 mcg of selenium and 200 mcg of chromium.

35 to 45

This is the "decade of vulnerability" (for some, it may be from 40 to 50). The average North American woman ages 18.6 years and the average man ages 16.2 years during this time. This is the make-or-break time. Either you will really do all that I recommend and reap huge rewards or you'll let it go and lose the survival advantage.

• Never eat after 7:30 pm, especially any sweets or carbohydrates, which raise your insulin or cortisol levels and prevent your youthful, regenerative hormone, called growth hormone (GH), from being synthesized and secreted.
• Eat 40 grams of fibre daily to soak up any excess cholesterol, estrogen and environmental toxins.
• Consume at least one fermented organic soy product, such as soy protein isolate powder, tofu, miso, tempeh or soy beans, daily so their phytonutrients genistein and daidzein protect your breasts or prostate from cancer.
• Take an antioxidant supplement to neutralize free radicals one capsule at each meal and one before bed.
• Take a midafternoon "green drink" for a natural energy boost without caffeine.

45 to 55

Your cortisol hormones rise as stress is encountered, and with each chronological year, your response to the same stress is greater and lasts longer. Elevated cortisol levels are extremely corrosive to your heart tissue and hypothalamus command centre in the brain. Reduce stress with exercise, walking, good nutrition and 8.5 hours of sleep nightly.

• Two stress busters I highly recommend are a full-body, deep massage for one hour every two weeks, and a cleansing sauna, infra-red sauna or steam bath to detoxify and relax once a week.
• Take 200 mg of CoQ₁₀ with tocotrienols, in divided doses, with fatty meals to help nourish the heart and maintain regular heartbeat.
• Try a CoQ₁₀ gel or vitamin C serum on your face to reduce wrinkles.
• Protect your memory by exercising your mind with reading, volunteering for a worthy cause or taking on new hobbies.
• Use glucosamine sulfate (sodium free) and chondroitin for injured, sore, stiff or arthritic joints.
• Work with your natural physician to keep hormones balanced and block the demise of your dopamine neurons. Dopamine is the hormone that keeps you attentive, alert, bright and motivated. During this decade, dopamine neurons self-destruct and dopamine levels plummet quickly.

55 and Beyond

This is a dynamic and exciting time to use your knowledge, age, maturity and insight to really work on yourself and become a wonderful human being. Make this your goal!

• To keep the hair on your head and reduce prostate enlargement, use the following four herbal extracts daily: saw palmetto, 450 mg; pygeum, 125 mg; corn silk, 120 mg; stinging nettle root, 30 mg.
• Decrease portions at meals and eat more frequent, lower-calorie meals to stabilize glucose metabolism.
• For deep sleep, use three capsules of a herbal sleep formula one hour before bed.
• Emphasize lower- and upper-extremity strength, balance and coordination in your exercise routine. Build flexibility through hatha yoga or tai chi.
• Work with a knowledgeable health-care practitioner to monitor your hormone levels and replace them with natural hormones, available as transdermally applied creams, skin patches or gels.
• Drink three cups of green tea daily.

The Power of Change

You may be thinking, "Yeah, but this will upset my habits, lifestyle and social life." True but cancer, strokes and heart attacks will probably upset them a heck of a lot more! Can you be creatively adaptable? If you can, your immune system will thank you by keeping you alive. You need to have great adaptability to survive successfully and do what no generation before you
has done live longer and healthier.